Phys. Rev. Lett. 92, 022501 (2004) [4 pages]Search for Anomalously Heavy Isotopes of Helium in the Earth’s AtmosphereReceived 18 February 2003; published 13 January 2004 Our knowledge of the possible existence in nature of stable exotic particles depends solely upon experimental observation. Using a sensitive laser spectroscopy technique, we searched for a doubly charged particle accompanied by two electrons as an anomalously heavy isotope of helium in the Earth’s atmosphere. The concentration of noble-gas-like atoms in the atmosphere and the subsequent very large depletion of the light 3,4He isotopes allow stringent upper limits to be set on the abundance: 10-12–10-17 per atom in the solar system over the mass range of 20–10 000 amu. © 2004 The American Physical Society URL:
http://link.aps.org/doi/10.1103/PhysRevLett.92.022501
DOI:
10.1103/PhysRevLett.92.022501
PACS:
27.10.+h, 14.80.–j, 36.10.–k, 95.35.+d
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